Peru official decries Chile court ruling denying Fujimori extradition

[JURIST] Peruvian Extradition Unit Chief Omar Chehade on Sunday criticized a Chilean court ruling [JURIST report] denying a Peruvian request for the extradition of former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori [personal website; JURIST news archive], characterizing it as slanted and partial decision. Chehade also indicated that Peruvian officials may travel to Chile to discuss Peru's appeal [JURIST report] of the extradition denial with judges on the Chilean Supreme Court [official website, in Spanish].

The Chilean high court is expected to take at least three months to rule on last week's verdict, in which Judge Orlando Alvarez rejected the extradition bid on the grounds that the Peruvian government failed to prove Fujimori's involvement in human rights abuses and corruption schemes. Fujimori served as president of Peru from 1990 to 2000 and is currently under house arrest [JURIST report] in Chile. He was arrested in Chile [JURIST report] in December 2005 after flying into that country from Japan to campaign for the Peruvian presidency, despite having been officially banned from holding public office until 2010 [JURIST report]. He is currently running for a seat in the Japanese parliament [JURIST reports]. Xinhua has more.

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